The Pub Hub

Become familiar with the background of the film:
IMDb: The Internet Movie Database provides all the names involved in each film.
Rotten Tomatoes: A site with that creates a percentage grade for each film based on a cumulative score created by all major critics.
Box Office Mojo: Provides daily updates of film profits while in theaters.

1. Lead: Your dramatic intro and a clear statement you will defend
“Think of all the ways you can hurt yourself laughing, as in fall down, split your sides, bust a gut, blow your mind. You get it all in Tropic Thunder, a knockout of a comedy that keeps you laughing constantly. It's also killer smart, lacing combustible action with explosive gags.” ---Peter Travers

“First, a little scorekeeping: Ang Lee's thoughtful, Freudian Hulk in 2003 was nowhere near as bad as its rep. And Louis Letterier's proudly pea-brained The Incredible Hulk is nowhere near incredible. In fact, in its rush to deliver a constant rush of action it forgets to think at all. But the latest spin on the Marvel comic-book hero delivers the popcorn goods.”

“AN IMPORTANT story indifferently told, Spike Lee's Miracle at St. Anna shows what happens when a film's execution does not measure up to its ideas.
The notion behind St. Anna is to create an epic World War II drama celebrating the largely forgotten exploits of African American infantrymen known as Buffalo Soldiers and to explore the complex dynamics of fighting for freedom in what was essentially a segregated Army.”

“WRITER-DIRECTORS Joel and Ethan Coen have such a distinctive creative palette that there ought to be a paint color named after them. Imagine it standing brooding and apart in the Benjamin Moore catalog, overwhelming the likes of mustang tan, Durango dust and barleyfield beige. Say hello to Coen brothers black, the go-to color when you're going really, really dark.
Because it is a comedy, the Coens' new film, Burn After Reading, is something of a palate cleanser for the brothers after the rigors of the Academy Award-winning No Country for Old Men. But because it's a Coen brothers film before it's anything else, this is about as dark and nihilistic as comedies are allowed to get before the laughter dies bitterly on your lips.”

2. Summarize: Give a little background.
Briefly hit the clear points of the film but don’t give anything major away (trailers can help). Dedicate approximately 3-5 sentences to this; don't make the summary the point of the article. When identifying people in plays and films provide character names in parenthesis.

3. Emphasis: Your highlights of the film
Address the failures and success of the film
Create 3 to 5 sentence paragraphs about anything worth discussing in the film: performances, entertainment value, cinematography, social significance, etc.

4. Conclusion: Go out with a bang; don't repeat yourself.

“10,000 B.C. is dumb. It’s asinine. And it doesn’t deserve a long conclusion.”

“The Dark Knight is the movie of the year for all major categories: dramatic, action and, dare I say, art house. If anyone didn’t like this film, they’re wrong. Christopher Nolan has treated the superhero genre with the integrity is deserves. There are still phenomenal action scenes, but the story and characters reign supreme.”

“The Happening is a pretentious waste of reel that further proves Shyamalan’s directing efforts are only getting worse. He continues to come up with unique concepts, and A-list actors want to work with him. But he lacks the capability to provide a story of interest. His films always have some deeper meaning, but that deeper meaning is lost amidst such mediocrity. And the moral of the story is…don’t care.”

“Though Burn After Reading is as much a nightmare as it is a comedy, helping with the laughs are the film's exceptional group of unsung character actors who deliver impeccable performances in minimal roles -- Jeffrey DeMunn as a cosmetic surgeon, J.R. Horne as a divorce lawyer and J.K. Simmons as a CIA big shot. When Simmons' exasperated character says of the story, ‘Report back to me when it makes sense,’ he's summarizing this archetypal Coen venture as well as anyone can.”

Checklist
Structure
1. Intro (3-5 sentences)
2. Summary (5-8 sentences)
3. Emphasis, order from most important to least (3-6 sentences per paragraph): Acting, production, unique themes, storyline, etc.
4. Dramatic conclusion (3-5 sentences)
When identifying characters in storylines put actors’ names in parenthesis.
Avoid first person, using it in more creative ways than "I think" or "I didn't like the film" (see Entertainment Writing Samples for examples)
4Don’t give away plot spoilers
Use complex sentences
Research the film